- The Western Cape High Court declared section 7(4) of South Africa’s VAT Act unconstitutional, ruling that only Parliament—not the National Executive—can change VAT rates.
- Attempts by the Finance Minister to increase VAT rates in recent budgets were blocked after urgent court applications and negotiations.
- The court found that allowing the Minister to alter VAT rates via budget announcements is an impermissible delegation of legislative authority.
- The declaration of invalidity is suspended for 24 months to give Parliament time to amend the law.
- The Finance Minister and SARS Commissioner were ordered to pay the DA’s legal costs.
Source: businesstech.co.za
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
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